Apple Inc.

Daniel K Clifford

Robert G Johnston, Jr

Dylan B Ashe

Kelly B Jacklin

Timothy J Craycroft

The program code for control objects in a graphical user interface is organized in a multi-level hierarchial structure. At one level of the structure, each different type of control defines a class of objects. The definition of a class includes most, if not all, of the functionality associated with the objects of that class. In addition, the class definition includes the overall structure of the object, such as the relative positions of different elements which make up the object. The actual appearance of these elements is defined by user selectable software that resides at a lower level of the hierarchy. Using this approach, only one instance of the program code which defines the functionality and overall structure of each object is required, resulting in smaller the overall memory requirements of the program code.

Graphical user interface with hierarchical structure for customizable menus and control objects

A system and method for collecting and dispatching selected events in an application program comprises an application routine which registers selected events of interest to form a series of handler tables, an event manager which evaluates each new event as it occurs to determine whether any new events are registered in the series of handler tables, and a series of event handlers for responsively handling new events which are registered in the series of handler tables.

System and method for collecting and dispatching selected events in a

Data structure and methods associating an arbitrary list of properties with user interface items on a graphical user interface display. Each property has a tag with which an application program can reference it, and arbitrary data which can be written, read and modified by the application program. Property lists for each user interface item are stored in in-memory pools of property lists. Each pool includes a header region having a variable number of index slots, each slot which is currently being used pointing to a respective property list in a property list region of the pool. Unused slots are maintained on a linked list of index slots. When a property list is to be added or removed from a pool, the maintenance routines grow or shrink the pool only by fixed increments. Each property list includes a variable number of property entries each having a tag field and a data field. Property lists are represented as a property table containing all of the tags in sorted order, followed by a property data region containing the data for all of the properties. Each property table entry includes a tag and an offset to the corresponding data in the property data region.

Method for associating and storing arbitrary data with graphical user

Explicit support is provided at the system software level for application program tear-off menus in a manner that is essentially application-transparent. All menus are transformed into windows and grouped in a single menu layer for each application, greatly simplifying many of the complexities of navigating through hierarchical and tear-off menus. Each application has its own menu layer that is shown and hidden as the application moves to the foreground and background. Tear-off menus, as with all menus, are hidden and shown with the menu layer, generating the desirable 'floating-window' behavior. More particularly, menus are managed in a graphical, event-driven computer system having a computer display by representing the menus as windows, providing a menu layer for containing menus of a computer program, and displaying a menu. Events occurring with respect to the menu layer are detected, in response to which display of the menu is varied.

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Palo Alto, CA, United States of America

Daniel K Clifford